YouTuber Tzuyang, a mukbang creator with 12.4 million subscribers, has joined her first fixed variety show, raising attention in the industry. She’s now appearing on ENA, NXT, and Comedy TV’s Where Will It Go? (어디로 튈지 몰라), a no-script restaurant tour program.
The press conference for the show was held on the 19th at the Stanford Hotel in Mapo-gu, Seoul, with Kim Dae-ho, Ahn Jae-hyun, Tzuyang, and Jonathan present. The program is simple in concept—no scripts, no pre-arranged stops. The cast visits restaurants through a chain of owner-to-owner recommendations.
At the event, Tzuyang explained why she had avoided regular TV until now.
She admitted, “The reason I avoided appearing on TV variety shows is that I’m not a very funny or witty person, and I’m not good at socializing. I tend to stay at home, so I never really even had proper meetings for variety shows.” She added that her busy YouTube schedule also kept her from considering outside projects.
Despite producer Lee Young-sik’s repeated offers, she had turned him down several times. “He kept contacting me, and I kept apologizing because our schedules didn’t match,” she recalled. But eventually, his reassurance changed her mind. “When I met him, he told me I didn’t have to be funny. He said I could just show my usual self, and that ‘we, the cast and crew, will make the show funny.’ That’s what won me over on the spot.”
Encouragement from her circle also played a role. “My friends and family told me to try it. They asked me why I wouldn’t do it since I’d be working with such great people,” she said. That support pushed her into her first regular variety challenge.
Now, her perspective has shifted. “After I tried it, I realized everyone was so nice, and the staff and production crew treated me well. I actually feel like I’ve become more social. I’m so glad I did it.”
On the difference between YouTube and TV, she commented: “I still get nervous on TV. With YouTube, it’s just me and my producer filming, so I’m comfortable. I used to avoid situations where there were a lot of people or a large camera crew, but through ‘Eo-twil-la,’ I’ve gotten used to it.”
Tzuyang also admitted she once found celebrities intimidating. “I never even contacted other celebrities separately. They seemed difficult, but through ‘Eo-twil-la,’ I realized that celebrities are just people like everyone else.” Looking ahead, she said she intends to keep challenging herself with more broadcasts.
